Method of producing articles such as skinless frankfurters



June 11, 1963 R. E. MOULE 3,092,872

METHOD OF PRODUCING ARTICLES SUCH AS SKINLESS FRANKFURTERS Original Filed Nov. 21, 1956 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 4({ INVEN'T 0R. BY f June 11, 1963 R. E. MOULE 3,092,872

METHOD OF PRODUCING ARTICLES SUCH AS SKINLESS FRANKFURTERS Original Filed Nov. 21, 1956 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR.

J 512 wzf g United States Patent 3,092,872 METHOD OF PRODUCING ARTECLES SUCH AS SKINLESS FRANKFURTERS Rex E. Monle, 11 Brentwood Drive, Holden, Mass.

Original application Nov. 21, 1956, Ser. No. 623,664, now

Patent No. 2,933,758, dated Apr. 26, 1960. Divided and this application Nov. 24, 1959, er. No. 855,199

1 Claim. (CI. 17-45) This is a division of my prior application Serial No. 623,664r filed by me November 21, 1956, now United States Patent 2,933,758.

This invention relates to a new and improved apparatus and method for the high-speed production of skinless frankfurters or other articles from a mash and directly without the use of any preliminary or intermediate covering or skin of any kind. The invention applies to other food and non-food products as well, and is not limited to frankfurters.

The principal object of the invention resides in the provision of such a frankfurter, etc.; the provision of a skinless frankfurter etc., which may be made and processed in rapid production; the provision of apparatus and method providing for the molding of frankfurters, etc. from a prepared fiowable or semi-fluid material or mash containing the ingredients of the frankfurters; the provision of an apparatus for molding and processing the frankfurters at the same time by heating the frankfurters to a temperature suitable for solidifying the same by the use of highfrequency electric current which may be provided by apparatus incorporated directly in a mold of relatively low di-electric resistance for making the frankfurters; or which may be provided in apparatus processing the frankfurters, and subsequent to the molding operation, resulting in either event in completely finished skinless frankfurters in condition ready for sale.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will appear hereinafter.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, in which FIG. 1 is a view of a part of a mold in which the frankfurters are made and heated;

FIG. 2 is a longitudinal section on a reduced scale taken through the complete mold;

FIG. 3 is a longitudinal section through the mold illustrating a modification;

FIG. 4 is an enlarged section on line 44 of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary perspective view illustrating a modified method of molding the frankfurters and heating the same;

FIG. 6 is a view in elevation, partly in section, looking in the direction of arrow 6 in FIG. 5 but showing a modification; and

FIG. 7 is a plan view of the apparatus shown in FIG. 5.

In carrying out the present invention, the same may be illustrated as involving the use of a mold which may conveniently comprise a molding plate or block 10 of material having a complementary molding plate or block 12 for cooperating therewith somewhat in the manner of molds used in the plastic injection molding industry. The two mold plates '10 and 12 together provide a cavity 14 which is formed in the desired shape of the frankfurter or other article and part of which is formed in each mold plate as indicated at 16 in FIG. 1.

There may be as many cavities as desired and each 3,092,872 Patented June 11, 1963 I may be used for providing the pressure by which the molds are filled with the material.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, there is provided as for instance in each mold block 10 and 12, an electrode or plate, these being indicated at 22.

The plates are in turn connected across the secondary 24 of a transformer, which transformer has a primary 28 connected as shown in the diagram to a tube circuit 30 capable of inducing high-frequency current across the plates 22. Preferably, the frequency of the current passing between plates is maintained on a high order of frequency in the neighborhood of 50 megacycles as an example.

Tne di-electric resistance of the material in the molds produces heat to the desired temperature for rendering the same more solid and in a condition to permanently retain the shape of the frankfurters in individual elements without the need for having any skin around the same. When the frankfurters, etc. have been thus heated for a very short period of time, the mold may be opened and the frankfurters etc. abstracted in a manner comparable to that used in the molding industry for plastics and other materials. The heat may of course be controlled to any desired degree such as may be necessary to cook the articles if they are food products but in any event to solidify the formed materials or mash to a solid enough state where they will maintain their own shape when cooled, and this is true whether the articles are of food or non-food nature.

As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, there are a pair of mold plates 36 and 38 having the cavities 40 therein as before but in this case the cavities are embedded directly in the mold plates and themselves form the mold cavity, so that there is no necessity for the high frequency induced current passing through the material of the mold as is shown in FIG. 2. However, in the case of FIGS. 3 and 4, it is of course necessary to provide a circumferential insulator means as at .2 between the electrodes 44 and 46. FIGS. 3 and 4 merely illustrate a slightly different apparatus from that shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 and it is to be understood that the skinless frankfurters or other articles may be formed and heated in many different ways without departing from the scope of the invention.

Another way in which the articles may be formed and processed is to provide a tank or hopper having a nozzle 48 with pressure means forcing the semi-fluid ingredients or mash therefrom resulting in an endless length of uncooked frankfurter 59. This is then passed between a pair of high-frequency electrode plates 52 more or less as above described with reference to FIG. 2. This results in heating the ingredients and forming the skinless endless length of frankfurter or other material which may then be severed in any desired lengths.

It is necessary to provide a support such as a traveling belt 54 for the purpose of supporting the advancing frankfurter strip and in some cases it is preferable to provide a shaped top surface such as shown at 56 wherein the 3 4 conveyor is provided with a concaved upper surface in and subjecting the molded food-product to a high frewhich the formed material may rest while the shape therequency electric current sufficient to cause the material to of is maintained during heating. be heated to a setting temperature wherein the heating Having thus described my invention and the advantages step and the molding step are separate.

thereof, I do not wish to be limited to the details herein 5 disclosed, otherwise than as set forth in the claim, but References Cited m the file of this patent what I claim UNITED STATES PATENTS The method of making a solid product from a commi- 2,401,991 Walton et a1. June 11, 1946 nuted semi-fluid mesh of ingredients in the absence of 2,651,808 Burnett et a1 Sept. 15,1953 any container or outer skin therefor comprising the steps 10 2,685,518 Prohaska Aug. 3, 1954 of continuously molding the ingredients of the product 2,877,118 Hensgen et a1 Mar. 10,1959 

